Leading from Your Strengths Certified
Leading from Your Strength Certified

Invest in Your Future ?

Invest in your future? What does that mean in today’s economy? Jason Bohn was a college student when he made a hole-in-one golf shot that won him a million dollars. He had a plan. Rather than squandering the money, he used it to improve his golf skills–a type of  “living-and-training fund”–an investment in his future, paying off with a win on the PGA Tour’s 2005 B.C. Open. (And proving “Bohn’s decision to invest in the future instead of living for the moment was a wise one indeed.”)

Likely, we won’t make a million-dollar hole-in-one, like Bohn. So how does this translate into a non-golf pro’s lifestyle and investment in our future?

“In a sense, that is what Jesus calls us to do.” (Invest in our future. But..how do we do that?)  We have been entrusted with resources–time, ability, opportunity–and we decide how/where/when to use them. Our challenge is to see those resources as an opportunity to invest long-term. ‘Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven…for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.’  (Matthew 6:20,21).

Think of your resources: your talents, time, knowledge.  “These are temporal and limited. But if you invest them with an eye toward eternity, these temporary things can have enduring impact.” What about your personality strengths and spiritual gifts? All these things are gifts to us from Creator God, with the intention of our investing them for eternity’s sake.

So…where is your heart? Earthbound or Heavenbound? And what is your focus? Now or forever?

You’re alive and reading this today, which is proof that you still have time and opportunity to invest in your future. “It will not only have an eternal impact, but it will also change the way you view life each day.” 

I’d like to hear from you about how you’re investing in your Future.

Onward! 🙂

Bill Crowder (adapted from Our Daily Bread, October, 2011)

Filed under: Spiritual Life — Tags: , — Pam Taylor @ 7:18 pm

Self-pity vs. Self-compassion

Self pity vs. self-compassion. What’s the difference? And, who cares?

Self-pity is a passive self-absorbed thing. It prevents us from having self-compassion. And it prevents us from fully loving others.

Imagine. (Pleeeeasssseee…Totally stop everything right now and take a few minutes to truly imagine with me...) Imagine a time when you’re tenderly and compassionately caring for someone that is ill. You lovingly put them to bed.  A little later, you go in to check on them and they are asleep. You stand in the doorway and you watch them sleep and you pray and will them to be well again. You have compassion for them. The person turns over, looks at you and you realize, that person…

It’s YOU!

Now…if you can stay in that moment of time, healing is waiting for you there!

Self-pity vs. self-compassion.

Modeling. Our children model what they see in us. If we don’t forgive ourselves, the child likely is unforgiving toward the mother/father and toward self, as well.

Healthy child: “My mother/father loved life.” However…If we raise “healthy” kids, and we only love them, but we don’t love ourselves, they too will have difficulty loving themselves, because that is what was modeled for them = NOT loving oneself.

Disclaimer: of course we are not referring to the model that embraces thinking the world revolves around oneself, but rather a good healthy love of what the Creator decided we would be. He chose our personality, our spiritual gifts, our talents and skills. To not embrace who we were created to be, is an affront to our Father. We owe it to our children to know the difference between self-pity vs. self-compassion.

I’d love to hear your thoughts about this. Have you found this to be true?

 

 

Filed under: Spiritual Life — Tags: — Pam Taylor @ 11:09 am

« Newer Posts